Blocking, cutting, drafting, rehearsing: these are just some of the things happening right now on the Loy Norrix Forensics team. The forensics season is officially in full swing, and the students involved are raring to go.

The Loy Norrix Forensics Team is a club for competitive public speaking. It is made up of 2 subdivisions; Dramatic Interpretation, or DI, and Public Address, or PA. These two subdivisions include a multitude of events that students are preparing for and will be performing in competition later this year. 

For Dramatic Interpretation, the events are Prose, Duo, Multiple, Dramatic Interpretation [of movie scripts, plays, etc.], Poetry, and Storytelling. For Public Address, the events are Extemporaneous, Impromptu, Sales, Informative, Broadcasting, and Oratory. Each event has a team of students who prepare their individual pieces, along with a captain, who is an experienced member of the team who assists other members in brainstorming ideas for pieces, drafting, rehearsing, and anything in between for each event.

“I feel I did very well as a person last year, my [Dramatic Interpretation] piece, ‘Dear Zoe’ by Phillip Beard, competed very well,” said Dramatic Interpretation captain Brooklyn Moore. “A lot of us went to regionals, and the largest number in a while went to state [finals].”

Last season’s team was the largest ever at the time, only rivaled by the size of this season’s team. Last season, 23 students went to state finals, which took place at Oakland University. 

When it comes to advancing through the tournaments, individual students are considered rather than the whole team or event (except for group events such as Multiple and Duo). This means that while some students may not advance in their event, other students from the same event can still move ahead.

“It’s just been me as their head coach, and even with such a large team, they’ve done an exceptional job of having student leaders and working as a team,” said Paige Carrow, head coach of the Loy Norrix Forensics Team. “Even when we have varying levels of experience, everybody is treated with respect and patience, and I love that about our team.”

The season has already kicked off for the Forensics Team. With auditions and workshops already completed, students are now editing their first cuttings, or drafts, for their events, which will be edited until their final drafts are due in mid-February. Then, starting every Saturday in March, there will be invitational tournaments, followed by regionals, and a short break before the state finals.

“It would be nice to see some of our upperclassmen, especially those who have been in the team for a few seasons, bring home some trophies this year,” said Carrow. “Since we’re a huge team, we should have the most support for each other.”